Modifying How a Data Item Is Formatted

Modify the Format of a Standard Data Item

To change the default format of a standard data item, complete these steps:
  1. In the Section Data pane, right-click a data item, and then select Format to open the Define a Format dialog box.
    Note: The data source administrator controls whether you can change the format of a standard data item. If you are not permitted to change the format, then Format is not available.
  2. Select a Type of format.
    Define a Format Dialog Box
    Define a Format Dialog Box
  3. Depending on which format type you selected, take the appropriate action, as shown in Format Selections and Available Actions.
    Format Selections and Available Actions
    Format Selected
    Data Item Type
    Action
    Default1
    all types
    No action necessary.
    Currency
    measures and alphanumeric categories that are physically stored as numeric data
    Select the number of digits to be displayed after the decimal point.
    Date
    date, time, or timestamp categories
    Select the date format that you want to use for the data item.
    Number
    measures and alphanumeric categories that are physically stored as numeric data
    Select the number of decimal places to be displayed and choose a format for negative numbers. You can also choose to use a thousands separator or to convert the value to a percentage. For relational data sources, you can use both options. For multidimensional data sources, you can select only one option.
    Predefined2
    alphanumeric categories that are physically stored as character data3
    Select the predefined format that you want to apply to this data item.
    Time
    date, time, or timestamp categories
    Select the time format that you want to use for this data item.
    1The Default format is the one that is used in the data source that contains the data item.
    2The Predefined format is available only if the data item is from a relational data source and only if the data item has been prepared by the data source administrator to offer predefined formats.
    3If an alphanumeric category that is physically stored as character data does not have any predefined formats available to choose from, then the Define a Format dialog box is not available.
  4. Click OK.

Modify the Format of a Custom Data Item

To change the format of a data item, complete these steps:
  1. In the Section Data pane, right-click a data item, and then select Format to open the Define a Format dialog box.
  2. Select a Type of format. For custom data items, the options are Default, Currency, and Number.
  3. Depending on which format type you selected, take the appropriate action, as shown in Format Selections and Available Actions.
    Format Selections and Available Actions
    Format Selected
    Action
    Default1
    No action necessary.
    Currency
    Select the number of digits to be displayed after the decimal point and specify a currency symbol.
    Number
    Select the number of decimal places to be displayed and choose a format for negative numbers. You can also choose either to use a thousands separator or to convert the value to a percentage.
    1The Default format is Number.
  4. Click OK.
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